
Max Werny is an Associate and PhD chemist at Zero Carbon. Based in Berlin, he leads Zero Carbon's activities in the DACH region. Before joining Zero Carbon, Max worked at the climate VC fund Extantia Capital, sourcing investments in metal recovery, biomining, and direct air capture. He also brings two years of chemical industry experience, having led projects on industrial catalyst development, CO₂ valorisation, hydrogen, and precious metal recycling at Heraeus Precious Metals, BASF, and Alantum.
“My PhD and industry experience come in handy when assessing deep tech companies.”
Combining my PhD with my experience in business development and sales within the chemical industry has given me a unique blend of technical and market insight. It has truly sharpened my instinct for spotting where a new technology could lead.
“I love working with exceptional founders and discovering frontier technologies.”
Working with highly driven founders who are trying to change the world is energising and, frankly speaking, a privilege. What makes it even better is that we get to follow what is happening at the frontier of climate and deep tech.
“Convincing unit economics are crucial.”
While we index heavily on the technical and commercial excellence of founders and their interpersonal and communication skills, a company is only going to succeed if its technology provides a clear economic benefit to its customers, without relying on green premiums.
Max recommends

What I love most about Harari's books is how seamlessly he combines history, philosophy, politics, and technology. I'd strongly suggest picking up 'Homo Deus' and '21 Lessons for the 21st Century'.

'Deep Work' is packed with great tips on how to tune out distractions and improve your productivity.

